FRIDAY SEPT. 28 2012 VOL. 39, NO. 21
75¢
including HST
Watch for more online at: WWW.BOWENISLANDUNDERCURRENT.COM
A day celebrating recovery
Local activists promote understanding for people dealing with addiction
Third best
Inspired by the elements
Bowen espresso earns spot on the podium at Seattle’s CoffeeFest
Bowen artist creates a mask of the Wind Man
The ten-dollars a day plan Event presents community plan for public system of integrated early care and learning SUSANNE MARTIN EDITOR
B
At the end of the day, Beth Legacy-Cole picks up her daughter Delilah from daycare. The working mom says that covering the bulk of child care costs impacts the family’s financial situation. Debra Stringfellow photo
Low water levels put Coho fry at risk SUSANNE MARTIN EDITOR
O
n Thursday morning at around 8:30, Roger Milsted, in his role of hatchery manager, checked the Terminal Creek Fish Hatchery and was greeted by a pungent smell. He checked the water levels and, finding them low, notified Bill Newport, president of the Bowen Island Fish and Wildlife Club. By 9:30 a.m., Milsted, with the help of members of the Fish and Wildlife Club, had
moved about 1,000 Coho fry to the lagoon. The quick action saved the seven-months-old Coho salmon but Newport says that this is not the first time the hatchery has been in a situation like this. “We have had reoccurring problems with the water levels in Terminal Creek over the last 15 years,” he said. Newport received the call from Milsted this morning and immediately checked the water levels in Grafton Lake, the source of the water for Terminal Creek. “Grafton
D. ND T A LEASE N FRO T RE TER S JUS A OT OW TW TES L E S A PHA W EST E RVI E T WA
Lake was low and Carter Pond was also very low. Terminal Creek was almost completely dry at the hatchery.” In the past, this has not been associated with low water levels but was a result to depleted water sources due to consumption. This time, the reduced water flow had a different cause. “I phoned the municipality and was told that they have had a pump going,” Newport said, adding that it’s the municipality’s continued, PAGE 2
eth Legacy-Cole and her husband Shawn Cole hope to be homeowners one day. But even though they both work full time, they won’t be able to buy a house in the near future. The reason? As B.C. residents, they have to pay the bulk of the cost for childcare for their three-year-old daughter Delilah. “The current system of childcare being funded by my husband and me impacts our finances and five-year-plan greatly,” Legacy-Cole said. “Since turning one, our daughter has been in daycare and we have estimated that we have spent approximately $1,300 per month on daycare during the first year and $1,150 per month during the second year as we moved locations.” Unlike other community and social services, child care in British Columbia is primarily a user fee service and Ann Silberman, executive director of the Bowen Children’s Centre, believes that this model does not work well. “For most of my working life of almost 30 years, this has been a struggle,” she said. “In order to get people working in child care to make a decent wage, the money has to come from the families. There is a direct relationship between fees and wages as we don’t get much other
• Waterfront from $1.7 million • 10-acre View Estate lots from mid $600’s • Rare opportunity to own 10 acres low to mid bank oceanfront
financial support.” Silberman explained that the Bowen Children’s Centre receives some government funding and grant money but parents’ fees cover most of the cost. “Elementary and secondary school teachers get paid fair wages and that is coming out of taxes but early childcare is funded by user fees,” Silberman said. “I don’t think this is sustainable.” She adds that she has to constantly apply for grant money and look for other fundraising opportunities in an effort to make the fees more affordable. “On Bowen, our situation may be a little bit better than in most daycares. A facility with a 25-child maximum is usually filled with 25 children but on Bowen we accommodate 50 families because many of the parents work part-time.” Silberman explains that if the parents had to work full time, she would need a facility with double the current capacity. And there is already a wait list for the toddler program. “Young families are at their most vulnerable. They have babies and try to build an economic base,” says Silberman, adding that, on the other hand, research shows that financial stability in families builds self esteem. There are other examples, even in Canada, that make sense continued, PAGE 3
• Space to build a wide range of outdoor amenities • Moorage potential • Southwestern exposure • Phase One 65% sold
New Presentation Centre now open at 1147 Homer Street, downtown Vancouver. Private Tours available directly from Yaletown Quayside Marina to Snug Cove Marina (Bowen). CALL TO BOOK YOUR PRIVATE APPOINTMENT This is not an offering for sale. E.&O.E.
VISIT US AT: TheCapeOnBowen.ca
1.866.710.0003